Windmill



. R. MORRIS.

WINDMILL.

APPLICATION FILED APR. l5', 1920*.

Patented July M, 1922.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l. 77 .F591

R. MORRIS.

WINDMILL.

APPLICATION FILED APII. I5, |920.

Patented July IUI, w22.,

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

AWR/YEAS.

a et

risica.

RAY MORRIS, OF NIAGARA FALLS, NEW YORK.

WINDMILL.

To @ZZ whom #may concern.'

Be it known that l, RAY Monnrs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Niagara- Falls, in the county of Niagara and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in lVindmills, of which the following is a specification.

This invention-relates to the type of wind mills in which the wheel or rotary frame carrying the blades or vanes is arranged horizontally instead of vertically, so that the mill is always ready to run, regardless of the direction of the wind and without the use of a vane for turning it into the wind.

One of the objects of the invention is to improve the construction of this horizontal type of wind mills with a view to obtaining the maximum power in proportion to the vane-area exposed to the wind, and with the minimum resistance of the vanes on the return-side of thewheel. i

A further object is the production of a mill of this type which canfbe easily started and stopped.

Another object is to provide the mill withv an efficient governing mechanism for automatically turning the vanes relatively to the wheel as the latter revolves and presenting them at a greater or less angle to the wind, according to its varying force and velocity, thereby preventing the wheel from running at a destructive velocit-y and'maintaining a practically constant speed of the mill which adapts it for driving'machinery requiring a steady and uniform motion.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly broken away, of a wind mill embodying the invention, parts of the governing mechanism being omitted. Figure 2 is any enlarged side elevation of the lower portion of the wheel showing the means for automatically swinging the vanes on their pivots. Figure 3 is a horizontal section on line 3 3, Fig. 1. Figure 4 is a similar section on line 4 4, Fig. 2. Figure 5 is a fragmentary vertical section on line 5 5, of Fig. 6. .Figure 6 is a horizontal section on line 6 6, Fig. 5. Figure 7 is a fragmentary vertical section of the shaft-bearing at the top of the tower. Figure 8 is a diagrammatic top plan view of parts of the wind mill and its governing devices. Figure 9 is a vertical section on line 9 9, Fig. 8. Figure 10 is a sectional diagrammatic side view of the elevator or main weight which actuatesI the wedges of Specification of Letters Patent.

rammen .muy ii, icas.

1920. serial no. 374,027.

the vane-turning devices, and the connections between said weight and its counterweights. Figure 11 is an enlarged longitudinal section of the friction drum on line 1v1 11, Fig. 8.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

12 indicates the stationary tower or supporting structure of the wind mill which may be of structural steel, or other suitable material, and 13 indicates an upright shaft or column carrying the wheel of the mill and ournaled centrally in the tower 12, the lower end of the shaft being preferably supported in a ball or other anti-friction stepbearing 14 carried by the base portion of the tower. In its preferred form, as shown, the shaft 13 is square and made of structural steel in skeleton form, to give it great strength combined with lightness. Its upper portion turns in an anti-friction bearing which steadies it and which, in the construction shown, comprises a horizontal bearing-ring` 15 secured to the shaft and bearing against a surrounding row of upright rollers 16 journaled in an annular cap or frame 17 secured to the top of the tower, as best .shown in Fig. 7. Below its stepbearing, the skeleton shaft 13 is provided with a cylindrical extension 18 from which motion is transmitted to the horizontal driven shaft19 by bevel gears 20, 21, or any other 'suitable mechanism.

The wheel or rotary frame of the wind mill is secured to thenpper portion of the upright shaft 13 and preferably extends both above and below the top of the tower, as shown. 1n the example illustrated in the drawings, this wheel' comprises spaced upper and lower rings 22, 28, and a suitable number of arms or open frames 24 extending radially from the shaft 1,3 and said rings at equidistant points, and each carrying a series of upright blades or vanes 25, four of such arms being shown in the drawings. This wheel is suitably stayed, as shown at 26. |The vanes of each arm 24 are arranged side by side and each vane is preferably mounted at its outer vertical edge upon anv upright rock shaft 27 journaled at its upper and lower ends in the adjacent top and bottom bars of the arm 24, so that the vane may swing into a position radially of the wheel, or at an angle to that position, to present either its edge to the wind or its Side at a greater or less angle,l in order to utilize the maximum power of the wind or less of it, as desired. The rockshaft of each'vane is provided at its lower end with a crank 28, and the cranks of the several vanes of a group are connected by a universal rod or link 29, so that by moving said link endwise in one or the other direction, all the vanes of that group are simultaneously adjusted. The swinging movement of the vanes is preferably lconfined to a quarter turn or quadrant extending fromtliev radial vor broadside position shown by full-lines in Fig. 4, to the edge-position shownby vdotted lines inthe same figure. v`The preferred stop device for limiting their movement in the last-named direction consists of a eXible connection, such as a chain or cord fastened at one `end to the wheel frame and at its other end to a stop arm 31 fixed to the rock shaft 27l of the innermost vane of the corresponding group'. Movement of each group in the 0pposite direction vis limited by a similar iieX- ible connection 32 which connects the corresponding universal rod 29 with a horizontally-swinging lever 33 pivoted to the lower member of the wheel frame, there being such a lever for each group of vanes. Each of these levers bears against the inclined face of a regulator or adjusting device preferably consisting of a weighted vertically-slidinglwedge 34 moving in an upright guidel 35 at the inner end of thevadjacent arm 24.

-rThese parts are so'arranged and. proportioned that when the upwardly-tapering wedges orfregulatorsare fullylowered, as.

shown in the drawings, the levers 33 lthrough the connectionsd32 prevent the vanes from.

swinging forwardly beyond their radial position under the pressure of the wind against Vtheir sides, but permit the vanes to freely i levers 33` are positively swung-farther inward and caused to swing thevanes out of their broadside position, while'by allowing tliefwedges to vdescend by gravity, thelevers 'and thel varies are Vpermitted to swing in the opposite direction under the wind pressureV against `the vanes. In the embodiment herein illustrated, the several wedges are actuated in unisony byV a vertically-movable weightor controller36 surrounding the upright kshaft 13 and sliding independently va notched segment 49', or by any' other suitthereof on upright guides 37. carried by the tower 12. Moving vertically in the hollow shaft 13 is a head'38 which is connected with the controller 36 by a cable 39. The several wedges are connected with this head by separate cables 40 running over guide pulleys 41 and 42 mounted on the wheel-frame and the upright shaft 13 above the wedges.

To effect the raising of the controller 36, it is provided with suitable counterweights 43 suspended from cables 44 passing over pulleys 45 and fastened at their upper ends tothe controller. lThese pulleys are carried by the tower12.

The wheel'is readily stopped by turning its'vanes edgewise to the wind. This is done by lowering the controller 36, so as to raise the wedges 34 and. actuate the universal links 29, as above described. vThe preferred means for pullingV down'thecontroller 36 for this purpose comprise a grooved drum 46 mounted on a horizontal shaft 47 supported inV a standard 48 and having a hand lever 49 for turning it. vUpon this drum'is wound a cable 50whieh is'secured at its upper end to the controller 36. Upon swinging the lever 49 forwardly, the cable 50 is wound upon the. drum 46, pulling down the controller against the resistance of its counterweights 43, raising the'regulators 34 and stopping` the mill by causing the varies to stand ledgewise to the wind. This lever mayv be locked in position by a catch 49a engaging able means. 100

The connections `between the wedges 34v and the controller 36 preferably pass down through the hollow vshaft or column 13, and to permitthe latter to rotate andthe controller to reciprocate freely, the cable 39 is 105 i attached atits lower end to a vertically-movable head or block 51 arranged within the colv`umn and having oppositely-extending arms 52 passing kthrough vertical slots 53 in the column. These arms terminate in anti-friction rollers 522L which run in anv annular raceway 52],in the bore of the controller 36,

as shown 'in Figs. 5 and 6,4 K ln addition to the above-described hand-vr controlled means for adjusting the vanes and 1154 starting and stopping the mill, the latter is preferably provided with automatic governing mechanism forv maintaining a'lregular f speed thereof, irrespectivel ofvariations in the velocity of .the wind. This mechanism is constructed -as follows: v

54 indicates a centrifugal ball governor driven from: the shaft 19 by a belt 55 and pulleys 56 and?. The customary bell crank.

vlever 58 vunder the control ofthe centrif- 125 uga-l governor,is connected by al link 59 with a shifting lever 60 fulcrumed at 61. l This Ishifting lever is pivoted at 62 to a laterally-sliding friction drum 63 having a pair of opposing beveled friction flanges 64, 65, 13

etY

adapted to engage opposite sides of a friction pinion 66. rIIhis pinion is secured to a transverse shaft 67 driven from the shaft 19 gagement of one or the other of its flanges with the pinion 66 which is constantly driven by gears 68,' 69. The friction drum 63 is splined upon a controlling shaft 70 arranged counter to the shaft 19, andthe drum is driven in one or the other direction by the enin the same direction by the shaft 19. Connecting the upper and lower sides of the controller 36 with the controllingl shaft 70 are aV 75 mounted on the tower above and below the.

controller 36. i

It will nowV be understood that when it is desired to start the wind mill, the controlling hand lever 49 is swung [backward to allow the controller 36 vto. be raised by the weights 43 ,and the weighted wedges 34, thereby lowering the latter and allowing the varies toI swing into. a radial position under the pressure of the vwind as shown by full lines inconnectionwith the right hand group of varies in Fig.` 3.v To effect this result, the combined weight of said counterweights and they weighted wedges must obviously preponderate over the weight of the controller 36. lWhen the vanes reach the rear or return side of the wheel they are free to swing rearwardly with their hinged edges facing the direction of rotation of the wheel, as shown in Fig. 3. In this position the vanes offer the least resistance to the rotation of the wheel. Then the vanes again reach the front, right hand arc of the circle, the wind returns them to their radial position in which they present their maximum area to its force. Assuming the wheel to be placed under the control of the speed governor, and the wheel to be'running at diminished speed, the righthand flange 65 of the friction drum will mesh with the pinion 66 and drive the shaft 70 in the proper direction to raise the controller and lower the wedges,'allowing the vanes to swing farther toward their radial position and more squarely receive the force of the wind. The speed of the wheel is thus increased. but the moment it exceeds the 36 is thereby depressed, the wedges 34 are raised and the vanes are turned at a greater or;less angle totheir carrying arms 24, thereby correspondingly reducing the effective vane-area presented to the wind and driving the mill at diminished speed. In this manner, the position of the vanes is constantly regulated by the automatic action ofl the speed governor to compensate for variations` in the windI and thus maintain a substantially uniform velocity of the mill.

During such automatic control of the motor the hand lever 49 is wholly disengaged from the segment`49b to allow the controller to lrise and fall without restraint except by the centrifugal governor.

Itv will be observed that each arm or radial wing of the wheel carries a group or series of upright vanes which, when turned in lineqwith one another or all standing radially of the wheel, collectively form a nearly continuous blade having the aggregate area of the entire group, thus presenting a considerable broadside to the wind and utilizing the wind-power tothe greatest advantage.

In addition to the important advantagesA of maximum power and minimum resistance afforded by this improved motor, the featherinoV action of its vanes is racticall noisenected with said crank, and means for actuating said lever.

2. A motor of the character described, comprising a horizontal Wheel, an upright rock shaft journaled in said wheel and having a crank, an upright vane carried by said shaft, an adjusting lever connected with said crank, a wedge-shaped regulator engaging said lever, and means for shifting said regulator.

3. A motor of the character described, comprising a horizontal wheel, an upright rock shaft journaled in said wheel and having an actuating crank and a stop-arm, a vane carried by said shaft, a flexible stopmember connecting said stop-arm with the wheel-frame, an adjusting lever, and a fleX- ible connection between said adjusting lever and said crank.

4. A motor of the character described, comprising a tower, a horizontal wheel mounted on said tower and having pivoted varies, adjusting wedges for said varies mounted on the wheel, a controller guided onvsaid tower,` guide vpulleysmounted"n said wheel,and cablespassing aroun'dsaid pulleys and connecting ysaid wedges with said controller( f f f" 5. A` motor of the character described,

vcomprising a'toweiga hollow uprightshaft j ournaled therein, a horizontal wheelmou'ntr` comprising a tower, a hollow upright shaft' ed j on said shaft and having adjustable vanes, 'a' i`vertically'-movable`y controlling member surrounding,said shaft and guided on saidtower, a vertically-movable head arranged 'within' said 'shaft and rotatable therewith independently of v`'said controlling member, means for'connecting said head with said controllingmember'to move ver` tically therewith, and operating connections extending from said head to said vanes and passing through said shaft. V a

6; A motor ofthe characters` described,

journaled vtherein and provided with vertical slots, a horizontal wheel mounted on said shaft and having adjustable vanes, a controller surrounding said shaft 'and hav ing an annular groove in its bore, ahead movable vertically within said hollow shaft and having arms extending throughl the slots thereof and engaging'sa-idgroove, and

operating connections extending fromsaid,

head to said vanes and passing through said 7. A lmotor of the charactery described,`

comprising a tower, a hollowV upright shaft journaled therein and provided with vertical slots, a horizontal wheelV mounted` on said shaftv and having adjustable vanes, jacontrollersurroimding said shaft and having a race wayin its bore, a head movabley vertically within said hollow shaft vand having arms extending through the slots thereof into said lracewa'y9 anti-friction members mounted on said arms and `running 1n said raceway, and operating' connections eXtending from said head to said vanes and passing' 9. A motor of. the` character described, comprisingian upright'shaft, a horizontal wheelrnounted thereon and having adjustable vanes, a common controller for said vanes movable lengthwise of said shaft, guide-pulleys arranged above and below said controller, a winding shaft, an actuating cable wound upon the last-named shaft and having branchespas'sing around saidvp'ulleys respectively and securedvto the upper and lower ends-of said controller, ay shaft geared to saidl uprightk shaft vand carrying' a pinion, avdrum splined on said `winding-shaft and having opposing flanges arrangedto engage said pinion alternately, 'and a centrifugal governor geared to said upright shaft andV controlling the shifting movements of lsaid drumy'` v Y 4. RAY MORRIS: 

